My Story: I Can’t Express The Actual Me At That Time. It Was As If I Was In Front Of An Enemy Who Was Responsible For All The Lives Lost

“It was the summer of year 1999. Suddenly I heard that a war took place in Kashmir. Being a school child , the word “War ” meant nuclear weapons to me as I only knew about Hiroshima and Nagasaki. People used to discuss about the probable missiles which could end the war. Kargil was burning and so was the country. I remember that almost everyday there were stories of families of martyr. Every newspaper, radio and TV was presenting a kind of live documentary of war.

While it was clear that we were going to win the war, the news of lives lost made me furious and helpless. I couldn’t resist tears when I used to read stories of Martyrs like Mr. Ahuja who had a small kid, and so many brave hearts who sacrificed their lives. So the image of Pakistan in my mind was like a very dangerous and rude neighbour.

In July 2015, I was in Dubai with my 4-yr-old son. While I was enjoying ” Omm Ali” my son started exploring the area. Soon a kind hearted waiter won his heart and my son started playing with him. After 10-15 min, I could hear the loud laughter of my son and I was amazed to see that both the guard and the waiter were playing with him as if they were also kids.

The guard was very good looking , gentle and very fluent in Hindi.
“Aap kahan se hain (where are you from)? ” I asked.
“Punjab”, He told and asked the same.
“Bihar/Delhi, Lekin aap Punjab ke nahin lagte ! your accent is very different and its more like Lucknow.””I was curious. as saying “Aap kahan se hain instead of “Aap kidhar se ho ” itself describes the probable place where he could belong .
” Main Pakistan wale Punjab se hoon” he said.
” Excuse me ” I wanted to confirm again.
” Pakistani , Main Pakistan se hoon” he replied calmly.

I can’t express the actual me at that time. It was as if I was in front of an enemy who was responsible for all the lives lost, who keeps doing terrorist activities blah blah” . For 10 min , there was pin drop silence. My son was busy with another new friend of his.

That Pakistani guy understood my puzzled situation. He calmly started narrating some festive events which he missed being far from his country. I had no clue how to react. In fact the image of that guy suddenly changed my mind. He was very polite but of no use to me. I came back to my room and kept thinking. – that Pakistani’s behavior was exactly similar to us. He was also polite and he also missed his family. He cared for my child and my child was as friendly with him as he was with my relatives. He was far away from his country to earn for his family. He missed his grand mother when there was any festival. He also dreamt of a perfect and peaceful life.

What was wrong then?”

Submitted By – Pragya Kashyap

If you too have an inspiring story to tell the world, send us your story at [email protected] OR WhatsApp Us at 8892 1200 30

My Story: With A Damaged Heart I Came Back To IIT. I Thought Of The Last Wish She Made To Me. What About That?

Partner Story

Know Why This Small Town In Tamil Nadu Is In The Guinness Book Of World Records

Did you know there is a town at the southern tip of India that can be called ‘Heaven on Earth’. Its people realise the importance of keeping the environment clean.

Madukkarai Panchayat in Coimbatore district, Tamil Nadu, is the cleanest place in India, owing to around 50 women who wake up every day to collect waste from each and every household in the town. At 6 AM, the women set out to work with their green jackets on, hands covered in gloves and caps adjusted perfectly on their heads. Every morning they line up for the roll call. These ‘Green Friends’ are part of the solid waste management program supported by ACC Cement – Madukkarai.

Madukkarai, a small town at the tip of the country, is in the Guinness Book of World Records for the largest recycling lesson in the world. With the help of around 50 women, who are now called ‘Green Friends’, and a simple, scalable model, this town is leading the way for efficient waste management. #SwachhBharat

While most of us find someone to put the blame on, Madukkarai decided to take control in their own hands. The town has 8,000 households and a population of 42,000. 82% of the homes hand over garbage to ‘Green Friends’ every day. 1,440 tonnes of garbage is collected annually from the town of 18 wards and 107 streets.

There is a lot that we can learn from Madukkarai. One of the most disturbing realities that we face, despite which part of the country we reside in, is the similar dirt everywhere – garbage piled up on roadside, drains clogged with plastic bags and dogs chewing on the leftover food we have callously thrown on the streets.

We keep our homes clean; make sure that the floors are mopped every day. But why do we not share the same sentiment for our surroundings? We hardly realize that the street outside our home is as much ours as is anybody else’s. We are the ones who use these roads every day to commute. Madukkarai realized this and the importance of a clean environment for our health and well-being.

Guinness Book of World Records for the largest recycling lesson in the world

‘Green Friends’ collect household wastes in eight different bins for wet waste, kitchen waste, plastic waste, etc. This is then disposed in large bins kept in several parts of the town. Trucks pick up this waste daily and take it to the resource recovery park where the garbage is recycled.

The treatment center segregates the different types of wastes. The kitchen waste is converted into fertilizers and given to farmers at extremely low prices to use in cultivation of their crops. The plastic waste is processed to be used in the construction of roads, and also at the large ACC factory where it is used as fuel at high temperatures which does not even cause pollution.

Due to the efforts of ‘Green Friends’, the citizens of Madukkarai, and the municipality, there has been a 60% reduction in landfill waste over the span of three years. There has also been a 50% reduction in the vehicle movement to the landfill sites, 85% of organic waste is converted successfully into vermin compost, ample reduction in the use of fossil fuels, reduction in greenhouse gas emission to 60%, and substantial decrease in the spread of malaria and dengue among the people. Furthermore, barren lands provided for compost yard have been successfully converted into fully functional organic compost yard and non-recyclable waste is used as an alternative energy source for the cement industry.

Madukkarai’s citizens have also become more environment-friendly, with 30% of the households segregating the organic-recyclable waste at home.

What we can learn

Madukkarai has paved the way to the sustainable development of our world. They have shown us that is not impossible to keep our environment clean. All we need is to inculcate in us a concern for mother Earth. It is commendable that ACC is supporting Madukkarai in its venture and helping it stay clean.

We, as citizens of other towns, cities, villages and states in India, have a lot to learn from Madukkarai. We too can have a healthier life if only we care enough and practice our civil duties proudly.